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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25798204">Tally Ho, Teacup!</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnailArmy/pseuds/SnailArmy'>SnailArmy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mechanisms (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, M/M, Other, Pet Names, Public Display of Affection, brief mention of injury (not to main characters), moon war fun times</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 10:01:01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,536</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25798204</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnailArmy/pseuds/SnailArmy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Now that Tim and Bertie have worked out their relationship, Jonny is less than thrilled to be in the presence of affection not directed at him. Luckily, the Toy Soldier has a solution.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bertie/Gunpowder Tim (The Mechanisms), Jonny d'Ville/The Toy Soldier</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>145</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Stowaways' Shenanigans, The Toy Soldier Has Rights</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Tally Ho, Teacup!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marquis_De_Mayhem/gifts">Marquis_De_Mayhem</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>this one is for Syl in the discord, i hope this is fluffy enough to live up to your amazing title</p>
<p>yes i have other wips. yes i stayed up until 1:30 am writing this instead. no i will not comment on how much of that time was spent reading cowboy slang, none of which made it into the fic.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jonny barely had time to be relieved when Tim realized that he was more than just Bertie's <i>best friend</i>, because the repressed gay idiots immediately began making up for lost time with annoyingly public displays of affection and the most embarrassingly saccharine pet names they could conceive. Instead of Gay Yearning, their small encampment was filled with Gay Activity. </p>
<p>To be clear, Jonny had nothing against Gay Activities... as long as they involved himself. It's not that he was needy, or anything. He simply deserved it. And after long, hard months of violence spent separate from nearly all of his crew, the lack of affection was beginning to weigh on him. Watching all the sappy bullshit Tim and Bertie got up to only made matters worse. It was all he could do to refrain from wiggling in between them on their cot and demanding cuddles. </p>
<p>Luckily for all of them, Jonny still had one of his datemates nearby. Unluckily, it was rather easily distracted and had difficulty picking up on subtle emotional cues. And Jonny was notorious for repressing his emotions at every possible opportunity. </p>
<p>The Toy Soldier had been gone nearly a week, earning a very shiny set of insignia on the other side before returning to the British Starborne Infantry as a Lieutenant-Colonel. It found its boys nearly exactly where it had left them, with maybe a few meters of gained ground. Tim and Bertie were hanging off of each other as was the new usual, and Jonny was curled up in TS's cot. As it approached, it could just make out their conversation over the din of distant laser fire. </p>
<p>"Ughhhh. Get a room." Jonny groaned, throwing what appeared to be a dirty sock in their direction. It missed by a wide margin. </p>
<p>"We have one," Bertie replied, taking a break from snogging Tim like his life depended on it. "It’s not our fault that you live there too." </p>
<p>"You're annoying and disgusting and I hate you both. I can't believe I'm sharing a trench with the two most insufferable homosexuals on the moon." </p>
<p>This time it was Tim who answered, sounding rather composed given that Bertie was currently biting a line of hickeys across his collarbone. "Wow, you rank us above the Kaiser himself? I'm flattered." </p>
<p>Bertie paused, taking a moment to catch his breath. "The Kaiser's gay? Good for him." </p>
<p>Jonny slammed his face into the pillow - it was nice, it still smelled faintly of varnish - and screamed. By then, TS had entered the tent proper, and sat down at the foot of the cot where Jonny was currently wallowing. </p>
<p>"Cheer up, old bean!"</p>
<p>Tim and Bertie were too engrossed in each other's presence to react to TS's return, but Jonny perked up immediately. For a second his eyes betrayed unreserved delight. Then he remembered his 'tough guy' exterior and the fact that he was currently lying in his datemate's bed, and attempted to harden his expression. </p>
<p>"Where the fuck did you come from. And for the record, I'm only in your bed because it was, uh, closer to the door. In case of emergencies."</p>
<p>The bed was not closer to the door. Also, Jonny was still clutching TS's pillow. It decided to remark on neither of those things. </p>
<p>"I only just arrived. I would have been sooner, but I met some delightful chaps with grenades, and got rather distracted!"  </p>
<p>Jonny relaxed a bit, releasing his stranglehold on the flimsy pillow, but he continued to steal annoyed (jealous) glances at where their trenchmates were draped over each other. The Toy Soldier had been around long enough to realize what was really bothering Jonny. With a soft grin, it reached over to ruffle his hair. He looked confused, so it decided to explain. </p>
<p>"Tim and Bertie are ‘annoying you’ with their affection, correct?" </p>
<p>Jonny agreed, making sure the pair in question could hear him. The only sign that they actually noticed was a slight increase in the volume and intensity of their activities. </p>
<p>"Well," TS continued, "I know that you like to be the most annoying person in the room." Jonny started to protest, but it was still talking. "So I will simply have to give you <i>more</i> affection, so that they will be the annoyed ones!" </p>
<p>Jonny's pout gave way to a trademark devilish grin, which he wasted no time in pressing to the Toy Soldier's lips. And if the loud moan was perhaps more theatric than was strictly necessary, well, it got the job done. Both Tim and Bertie were staring at them now. After several minutes of dramatic making out, TS pulled away, mostly for the sake of their partner who was in possession of lungs. "Come now, sugarplum.” It laced the nickname with as much overbearing sweetness as it could manage, which was quite a lot. “You'd best be sleeping, or you'll be proper knackered in the morning." </p>
<p>Jonny just grumbled into TS's shoulder, making no move to get up and return to his own bed. </p>
<p>"What was that, love? You'll have to speak up." </p>
<p>"I said, <i>fine,</i> but only if you let me sleep in your bed tonight." </p>
<p>The Toy Soldier planted a small kiss into his hair. "Your terms are amenable! We will commence the operation at once!" With that, it wrapped its arms around the mate and fell back onto the bed, bringing him with it where he collapsed in a heap on its chest. TS was a very stiff sleeper, so it was no problem for Jonny to snuggle up into a comfortable position. He was out like a light. </p>
<p>With that taken care of, TS turned to Tim and Bertie, who had returned to their own makeout session with slightly more awkwardness than before. "You chaps are on lookout tonight. Best of luck!" </p>
<p>--</p>
<p>In the days that followed, Jonny took sadistic glee in showering the Toy Solder with affection at every possible opportunity. It took equal delight (if less malicious) in doing the same.</p>
<p>One morning, for example, Jonny got up early, and made coffee for himself and TS (who did not actually drink it but appreciated the gesture nonetheless). Later that day, TS presented Jonny with a particularly shiny piece of shrapnel it had found embedded in a man's thigh. Pet names were bandied about with wild abandon, until the duo had exhausted every adorable barnyard animal and sugary dessert under the sun. </p>
<p>Tim was a bit put out, at first, but Bertie adapted to the new status quo easily and even Tim had to admit that every minute Jonny spent doting on TS was one less minute spent being needlessly rude. Jonny, for his part, was too busy getting high off his own romantic tendencies to notice that his sinister plan was less than effective. </p>
<p>As the weeks passed, the overbearing affection settled into a routine of domesticity and tenderness. Everything ran a lot more smoothly with Jonny's need for attention appeased. Nothing can last forever, though. Eventually the buttons on its uniform began to lose their sheen, and the Toy Solder felt the siren song of combat once more. Jonny came out to meet it early one morning as distant alarms signaled another mundane calamity. </p>
<p>"Going away again, canary?" he asked, holding a blanket around his shoulders like a cape, voice thick and tired. </p>
<p>"I think it's about that time. A soldier never shirks his duty, you know." TS couldn't quite bring itself to look at Jonny, instead keeping its gaze fixed firmly on the darkened horizon. He wouldn't be happy to see it leave, but the time spent together had certainly improved his mood. Hopefully it would be enough to tide him over until it had made the rounds again. It rather liked Tim and Bertie, and it would be a shame to lose them to Jonny’s boredom/annoyance/jealousy. </p>
<p>Jonny draped his arms around its waist from behind, nuzzling his face into the approximate region of its shoulder blades. He really was quite short when compared to the rest of them. "I getcha. But come back soon, m'kay? Miss you." The words were muffled by fabric and residual sleepiness. </p>
<p>Gently, the Toy Soldier placed its hands over Jonny's. "Oh, naturally, my love. You know, the Lennys have the most spiffing coats, I simply must bring you one! It gets so cold down here." </p>
<p>The rumble of Jonny's laugh against its back filled TS with warmth, with pride, with love. "Appreciated, but I wouldn't wear it half as well as you. Take care of yourself out there, TS." </p>
<p>It responded with a crisp salute that Jonny felt more than saw. Several minutes of comfortable silence later, when he deigned to let go, TS spun around and embraced him properly. "Watch over the boys for me, tenderheart. I'll be back in a jiffy." It pressed one last kiss to Jonny's forehead and then it was marching off again, whistling a jaunty tune. Jonny found himself humming along, already yearning for the press of solid wood against his skin. </p>
<p>Behind him, Tim and Bertie were just beginning to rouse themselves from sleep. Silently, Jonny resolved to be a little bit less of an asshole about their PDA. But only a little.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>there may or may not be other chapters to this. we'll see.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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